Electric railway



(No Model.)

H. M. HUNTER. 311301 1110 RAILWAY.

No. 440,595. Patented Nov. 11,1890.

I )(hvenfor UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

RUDOLPH M. HUNTER, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNCR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO THE THOMSON-HOUSTON ELECTRIC COMPANY,

OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

ELECTRIC RAILWAY.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 4 0,595, dated November 11, 1890.

Original application filed September 23, 1886, Serial No. 214,306. Divided and this application filed May 29, 1889. Serial No.

312,578. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, RUDOLPH M. HUNTER, of the city and county of Philadelphia, and State of Pennsylvania, have invented an Improvement in Electric Railways, of which the following is a specification.

My invention has reference to electric railways; and it consists of certain improvements, which are fully set forth in the following 10 specification, and shown in the accompanying drawings, which form a part thereof.

This application (Case 100) is a division of my application, Serial No. $4,300, filed Sep tember 23, 1886.

In carrying out my invention I provide a series of poles or supports extending along a railway to one side of the track or between two tracks, and upon these supports I arrange in any suitable manner the conductor or con- 2o ductors, which supply current to the electric- 30 or, if desired, separate insulated returirconductors may be used in place of the rails. The suspended conductors are preferably supported at a higher elevationthan the carroof, so as to be out of reach of persons on 3 5 the railway, and the current collected by an extended collector-arm carried by the car and provided with an under-contact wheel or otherwise. Any other form of collector may be used. In this case the working-conductors o of like polarity of the two tracks are preferably connected in parallel. By this construction the supp1y-conductor may be supported along the railway in any convenient manner and normally out of reach of the current-col- 5 lecting device, while the Working-conductor,

receiving its current from the supply-conductor, is in position to maintain at all times an electrical contact with the collector on the electrically-propelled vehicle. Furthermore, it enables the light working-conductor to be supported in any suitable manner within reach of the contact device in the vehicle, while the heavy supply-conductoris supported in the most desirable way without regard to being within reach of the current-collecting device on the car.

I do not confine myself to any particular detail of construction, as my invention comprehends, broadly, supporting the conductors over one or more parallel tracks by a line of poles, and supporting working and supply conductors by the same poles or means of support.

In the drawings, Figure l. is an elevation of an electric railway embodying my invention, and Figs. 2 and 3 are cross-sections of two modified forms of railways embodying my invention.

A is the supply-conductor, B is the working-conductor, C is the electric generator for furnishing electricity to the supply-conductor, D are the poles, and E are the rails, which may act as the return-conductors.

The current from the generator C goes out the supply-conductor and passes by branch conductors P to the working-conductors B, from which it is taken by the collector I J on the car, and after energizing the motor and lamps passed to the return-conductor E.

In the construction shown in Figs. 2 and 3 there is a single track, and the supply-conductor A is supported to one side of the upper part of the posts or poles D, and the working-conductor B is suspended on the other side of the posts or poles and adjacent to or over the rails E, so that a collector on a car running upon said rails may make a running or traveling contact with said working-conductor.

In Fig. 2 a branch wire P is used as a connection between the two conductors A and B, while in Fig. 3 the conductor B normally rests in V-shaped supports, which act as the connecting or branch conductors. In Fig. 2 the conductor B is supported wholly from above, while in Fig. 4 it is supported wholly from below. In both cases, however, the trolley may make a traveling contact on the under side. F is the car, which may be of any suitable construction and furnished with one'or more electric motors G, by which it may be propelled. The collector may be of any suitable construction, such, for instance, as set out in my patent, No. 398,402, dated February 26, 1889.

As shown in the present drawings, an under-contact grooved Wheel I runs upon the under side of the conductor and is supported by the car on an arm J preferably upwardlyextending, and said arm may be suitably supported. The current is supplied to the motor G from the collector bya motor-circuit N, having a suitable regulator H to control the speed of the motor.

L in Fig. 1 represents electric lamps on the car in multiple with the motor or motorcircuit and included in the lighting-circuit K on the car.

It will be observed that the supply-conductor is supported upon opposite sides of the support for the working-conductor when considered with reference to said workingconductor, the working-conductor being arranged below the supports and the supplyconductor being arranged above the supports. I do not confine myself to any type of post or support, as it may be plain or ornamented and of wood or metal.

The supply-conductor may be a wire or cable and bare or insulated, while the working-conductor would in all cases be bare and preferably smaller.

In all cases the supply and working conductors are supported by the same means of support and are held out of reach of persons on the cars or railway, and also provide sufficie'nt height to enable vehicles of all kinds to readily pass beneath them.

Having now described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In an electric railway, the track-rails, a line of poles or supports arranged along the line of the track, a supply-conductor also supported on the poles or supports and electrically connected at intervals with the working conductor, an electric generator for supplying current to the supply-conductor, a suspended electric working-conductor supported by said poles or supports at an elevation, a car, an electric motor mechanically connected with the axle to propel said car, a moving current-collector carried by the car and making a traveling contact with the working-conductor, and an electrical connection between the collector and motor.

2. The combination of a railway-track, a line of posts or poles along said railway-track,

a supply-conductor and a working-conductor suspended by said posts and connected in parallel, a traveling car running upon the track, a collector moving with the car and making a traveling con tact with the workingconductor, a circuit carried by the car connecting the collector with the railway-track, (which track acts as the return-conductor,) and a translating device carried by the car and receiving current from said circuit.

3. The combination of 'a railway-track, a line of posts or poles along said railway-track, an insulated supply-conductor and a bare working-conductor suspended by said posts and connected in parallel, a traveling car running upon the track, a collector moving with the car and making a traveling contact with the working-conductor, a circuit carried by the car connecting the collector with the railway-track, (which track acts as the returnconductor,) and a translating device carried by the car and receiving current from said circuit.

4. The combination of a railway-track, a line of posts or poles along said railway-track, a supply-conductor and a working-conductor suspended by said posts and connected in parallel, a traveling car running upon the track, a collector moving with the car and making a traveling contact with the under side of the working-conductor, a circuit carried by the car connecting the collector with the railway-track, (which track acts as the return-conductor,) and a translating device carried by the car and receiving current from the said circuit.

5. The combination of a railway-track, a series of posts or poles along said track, a supply-conductor and a working-conductor connected in parallel and suspended upon said posts at an elevation above the track, a traveling car, an electric motor to propel said car, a current-collecting device carried with the car and making a traveling connection with the suspended working-conductor, and a motor-circuit for supplying current from the collector to the motor.

6. The combination of a railway-track, a series of posts or poles along said track, a supplyconductor and a working-conductor connected in parallel and suspended upon said posts at an elevation above the track, a traveling car, an electric motor to propel said car, a currentcollecting device carried with the car and supported thereby and making a traveling connection within the suspended working-conductor, and a motor-circuit fol-supplying current from the collector to the motor.

7. The combination of a railway-track, a series of posts or poles along said track, a supply-conductor and a working-conductor connected in parallel and suspended upon said posts at an elevation above the track, a traveling car, an electric motor to propel said car, a current-collecting. device carried with the car and supported thereby and making a travcling connection with the suspended workingconductor, and a motor-circuit for supplying current from the collector to the motor.

8. The combination of a railway-track, a series of posts arranged along the side of said track, a supply and working conductor connected in parallel and supported by said posts at a distance above the track, a traveling car, an electric motor to propel the car, and an upwardly extendin g collector-arm for making contact with the working-conductor for supto the motor on the car from the supply-conductor.

10. The combination of a railway-track, a series of posts arranged along the side of said track, a working-conductor supported by said posts at a distance above the track, a supplyconductor connected with the working-conductor in parallel and also supported by posts, a traveling car, an electric motor to propel the car, and an upwardly-extending collectorarm making an under contact with the working-conductor for supplying current to the motor on the car from the supply-conductor.

11. The combination of a railway-track, a series of stationary supports extending along the railway, a working-conductor suspended below the supports, a supply-conductor suspended above the supports, connecting-circuits for coupling the supply and working conductors in parallel, a traveling electricallypropelled car, and an upwardly-extending current-collecting arm making a traveling contact with the working-conductor.

12. The combination of two parallel railway-tracks, a series of posts or poles arranged between them, a working-conductor for each track supported from said posts on the side adjacent to its track and at a considerable distance from the ground,whereby the weights and strains are equally balanced upon the supporting-poles.

13. The combination of two parallel tracks, a series of posts or poles arranged between the tracks and having cross-arms extending transversely over each track, a working-conductor suspended from each of the cross-arms and over the respective tracks, a traveling car, and a current-collecting device carried by the car and adapted to make contact With the suspended conductor of either track when the car is on the corresponding track.

14. The combination of two parallel tracks, a series of posts or poles arranged between the tracks and having cross-arms extending transversely over each track, a working-conductor suspended from each of the cross-arms and over the respective tracks and coupled in parallel, a traveling car, and a current-collecting device carried by the car and adapted to make contact with the suspended conductor of either track when the car is on the corresponding track.

15. The combination of tWo railway-tracks, a series of posts or poles arranged between them and providedwith transverse cross-arms at their upper parts extending out over either track, and a working-conductor suspended from each of said arms over the correspond ing track.

16. The combination of two railway-tracks, a series of posts or poles arranged between them and provided with transverse crossarms at their upper parts extending out over either track, a working-conductor suspended from each of said arms over the corresponding track, an electrically-propelled car, and a current-c0llecting device extending from the car and making a traveling contact with the conductors.

17. The combination of two railway-tracks, a series of posts or poles arranged between them and provided with transverse crossarms at their upper parts extending out over either track, a working-conductor suspended from each of said arms over the corresponding track, a supply-conductor supported by said posts or their cross-arms and coupled in parallel with both of said working-conductors, an electrically-propelled car, and an upwardly and rearwardly extending currentcollecting arm carried by the car for making a traveling contact with the working-conductors and supplying current to the motor on the car.

18. The combination of a railway, posts or poles arranged along the side of the railway, a suspended bared working-conductor supported by said posts above the railway,-a supply-conductor suspended on the posts and supported at a distance from the railway, a source of electrical power connecting with the supply-conductor, and electrical connections at intervals uniting the working and supply conductors inparallel.

19 The combination of a railway, posts or poles arranged along the side of the railway, a traveling car having an upwardly-extending current-collecting device, a suspended bared working-conductor supported by said posts above the railway with which the collecting device makes contact, a supply-conductor suspended on the posts and supported at a distance from the railway and out of reach of the collecting device, a source of electrical power connecting with the supply-conductor, and electrical connections at intervals uniting the working and supply conductors in parallel.

20. In an electrical railway, the combination, with an electrically-propelled vehicle on the track and its contact device, of means for In testimony of which invention I have 10 supplying current thereto, consisting of tWo hereunto set my hand. parallel conductors electrically connected,

one being a Working-conductor exposed to the R. M. HUNTER. contacfidevice and supported over the railway by transverse extensions from side posts Vitnesses:

and the other being a main continuous sup- ERNEST HOWARD HUNTER, ply-conductorindependentlysupported on the A. J. DUNN.

posts in any desired manner. 

